The instinct was to grimace at the sight of defenders in panicked retreat as Arjen Robben fizzed Holland ahead, or wince as Klaas-Jan Huntelaar thumped in a header and left Chris Smalling bloodied and floored. England had been beaten in their last fixture before the manager, whoever he may be, names his squad for Euro 2012. Yet, even with the deficiencies exposed here, this was also an occasion to consider the wider picture.

The natural order eventually reasserted itself, the World Cup runners-up finding their range around the hour-mark and then mustering a late riposte just as the home support revelled in unlikely parity. The Dutch were incisive only when they deemed it necessary, but there was still encouragement to be taken from the rewards England eked out in the final five minutes. A squad that Stuart Pearce stressed had been selected with "a young bias" had enough spirit to rally. They will have learned, even in the disappointment of defeat.

This was an education. Pearce hinted at much by pointing out "naivety" in the ranks, but those youngsters who featured will be wiser. Smalling, dazed and confused as he departed on a stretcher, will pick positives from his first-half display at centre-back. There were flashes to admire in Danny Welbeck's slippery movement. Daniel Sturridge was England's brightest attacker and the sponsors' man of the match, bursting to the by-line in his first involvement and forcing Maarten Stekelenburg to save smartly while the game was still scoreless. These players, with Phil Jones thrown in, are the national team's future.

The scoreline may appear to prolong a traumatic month at senior level following the untimely departure of Fabio Capello, but it should not be forgotten that when France inflicted England's last defeat, back in November 2010, they wiped the floor with the home side. This felt slightly different. England had played the game's more attractive football in the first half. The sight of Joe Hart eager to roll the ball to Micah Richards while opponents swarmed in might once have appeared suicidal, but the full-back merely took a touch, found a man, and glided up-field in search of a return pass: simple, graceful and effective.

Pearce applauded the rat-a-tat passing routines and stamped his feet in frustration whenever the ball was launched long, as if such direct action was a reminder of a painful past. The desire to play neat, controlled football was admirable, and was perhaps to be expected. For all the recent upheaval, there is a spirit of optimism flowing through this setup, stemming from the waves the junior sides are making across Europe. The coaching structure is singing from the same hymn sheet and thriving ahead of the move to St George's Park, a dedicated centre of excellence, in September.

While the likes of Welbeck, Sturridge, Jones and Smalling gained another taste of bigger things here, the Under-21s, were thrashing Belgium on Teesside. Some 22,647 fans were at the Riverside for a 6pm kick-off on the same night as a senior fixture. Players made names for themselves, too: from Marvin Sordell, Bolton's £3m signing from Watford, to Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace. The 4-0 victory maintained an upbeat tone.

Some 24 hours earlier, Noel Blake's all-conquering Under-19s had defeated the Czechs without the likes of Connor Wickham, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Josh McEachran, three of five who had been fast-tracked into the Under-21s. Blake's charges, as Under-17s, had claimed the European Championship two years ago in Liechtenstein, the national set-up's only significant tournament success in 19 years, during which time the Spanish juniors have claimed 14 honours. Yet Spain have only beaten England once in almost three years. The eight meetings across the age groups in that time have seen the English prevail at Under-16, Under-17 (twice) and Under-21 levels, hinting at underlying progress.

Club academies have made vast strides, but players are also benefiting from a shared philosophy, that follows a Spanish model, at representative level. "When the Under-16s won in Madrid a few weeks ago none of our players panicked in possession," said Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA's head of football development. "We kept the ball, played it out from the back. The philosophy is to play out through the three thirds."

It will rub off on the likes of Conor Coady and Patrick Bamford as they head into the age group's Elite Round Qualifiers in the spring. It will also filter through to the seniors in years to come so glimpses of assured combination play, and a recognised style through the age groups, should be seized upon as promising. There may be considerable work to be done in the short-term, from the appointment of a manager to the tweaking of a team, but, for once, it feels as if the longer-term oozes promise.

Forget the Oranje? I don't think so. The Dutch have some of the most amazing youth academies in Europe and should never be counted out.

England have some pretty big names among their young players at the moment but it doesn't take away that they've failed to deliver on any form of big stage. "The wider picture" is that England scored an off-side goal in this match and that the Oranje squad today is worse than the squads of '88 and '98. Come back when England have actually delivered results. Stupid irrelevant article.